Scaffolding

The University of Tennessee

Office of Environmental Health & Safety
What is a Scaffold?

An elevated,
temporary work
platform
Three Basic Types:

9Supported
9Suspended
9Aerial Lifts
 Do employees working on
scaffolds need to be trained?
 Hazards
9Falls from elevation
9Struck by
9Electrocution
9Scaffold collapse
9Bad planking
Fall Hazards
Falls may occur:

9While climbing
9Working
9Equipment failure
 Protecting Workers
from Falls
9Guardrails,
and/or
9Personal Fall
Arrest Systems
(PFAS)
Guardrails
9Front edge
9Top rails
9Midrails
9Toeboards
 Personal Fall Arrest
Systems (PFAS)

9Anchorage
9Lifeline
9Body harness

Must be trained to properly use PFAS

 Fall Protection
Requirements
9PFAS instead of guardrails
9PFAS & guardrails
9PFAS on erectors and
dismantlers

The ends of this scaffold

are not properly guarded
 Falling Object
Protection

9Hardhats
9Barricade
9Panels or screens
9Canopy or net
Overhead Power Lines

Ten foot rule recommended

 Scaffold Support
Example #1

Inadequate support – in danger of collapse?

Scaffold Support
Example #2

Good support
Essential Elements of Safe
Scaffold Construction
9Appropriate construction
9Proper access
9Competent person
 Scaffold Platform
Construction
Platforms must:

9Fully planked
9Able to support
918 inches wide

This is not a properly

constructed scaffold
 Scaffold Platform
Construction

9Gaps
9Support
9Overlap

Planks not properly overlapped

Scaffold Platform
Construction
9No paint
9Graded wood
9Fully planked
9Matching components
9Stability
9Locking
 Scaffold Height
20’
No more than
four times its
minimum base
dimension

5’
 Final Rule
Summary and Explanation
Q: When is a competent person required
for scaffolding?

Answer:
To - select and direct employees who erect, dismantle, move or alter scaffolds.
To – determine if it is safe for employees to work on or from a scaffold during
storms or high winds and to ensure that a personal fall arrest system or wind
screens protect these employees.
To – train employees involved in erecting, disassembling, moving, operating,
repairing, maintaining, or inspecting scaffolds to recognize associated work
hazards.
To – inspect scaffolds and scaffold components for visible defects before each
work shift and after any occurrence which could effect the structural integrity
of the scaffold.
The competent person must be capable of identifying existing and
predictable hazards in the surroundings or working conditions, which are
unsanitary, hazardous or dangerous to employees, and who has
authorization to take prompt corrective measures to eliminate them.
 Final Rule
Summary and Explanation
Q: When is a qualified person required
for scaffolding?

Answer:
Same as the qualified person with the following exceptions:
To - design and load scaffold in accordance with that design.
To – design rigging, and platforms for suspension scaffolds and make
swaged attachments or spliced eyes on wire suspension ropes.
A Qualified Person is one who by possession of a recognized degree,
certificate, or professional standing, or by extensive knowledge,
training, and experience has successfully demonstrated his/her ability
to solve or resolve problems related to the subject matter, the work ,
or the project
 Final Rule
Summary and Explanation
Q: When is an engineer required?

Answer:
To design – the direct connections of masons’multi-point adjustable
scaffolds; scaffolds that are to be moved when employees are on them;
pole scaffolds over 60 feet; tube and coupler over 125 feet; frame
scaffolds over 125 feet and to design brackets on fabricated frame
scaffolds used to support cantilevered loads in addition to workers.
The standard requires a registered professional engineer to perform
these duties.
 Platform Ends
Unless cleated e ?
r
or restrained he
by hooks, ng
must extend r o
w
over supportt’s
a
by at leasth 6
inches
W

No Cleats
 Supported Scaffolds
9Supports
9Restraints
9Foundation

This support is not adequate!

This is a great example of
what can happen when
construction workers fail
to investigate the site
where their scaffold is
being erected, and base
plates are not used. The
scaffold in question (now
taken down) punched a
hole through the
downtown sidewalk. The
workers failed to realize
that the sidewalk was only
made from blacktop, and
it had a basement under
it. EXAMPLE OF POINT
LOADING!!
 Proper Scaffold Access
Permitted types of access:

9Ladders
9Stair towers
9Ramps & walkways

May use building stairs and come

out window
 Scaffold Access
9Crossbraces
9Other scaffold
9Ladders
9End Frames

End Frame
Do not access by crossbraces
 Suspension Scaffolds
9Platform suspension
9Recognize hazards
9Prevent swaying
9Support
9Competent person
9PFAS
Moving Scaffolds
Employees can’t be on a moving
scaffold unless:

9Level surface
92 to 1 ration
9Outriggers
9Competent person
Employees can’t be on scaffold
part beyond the wheels
 Fatal Fact – Moving a Lift
Employee was operating an aerial lift,
with an extendable boom rotating work
platform.

The boom was fully extended and the

machine apparently ran over some
bricks, causing the boom to flex or
spring, throwing the employee from the
basket.

The employee fell (head first) 37 feet to

a concrete surface below.
 Don’t use Shore or
Lean-to Scaffolds
Shore
scaffold Lean-to
supported scaffold
scaffold which supported
is placed scaffold which
against a is kept erect by
building or tilting it toward
structure and and resting it
held in place against a
with props building or
structure
 Using Scaffolds
9Snow or Ice
9Storms or High
Winds
9Tag lines
9Protect suspension
ropes
A covered scaffold has special
wind load considerations
 Fatal Fact – Ice & No
Guardrails
A laborer was working on
the third level of a tubular
welded frame scaffold
which was covered with ice
and snow

The scaffold was not fully

decked, there was no
guardrail and no access
ladder

The worker slipped and fell

head first 20 feet to the
pavement below
Overhead Bricklaying
from Supported Scaffolds

A guardrail or personal fall arrest system is

required on all sides except the side where
the work is being done
Competent Person

9Identify hazards
9Corrective action
9Storm / High Winds
9Trainer
9Crew selection
 Scaffold Inspection
9A competent
person will inspect
scaffolds for visible
defects before each
shift and after any
alterations
9Defective parts
must be immediately
repaired.
Deformed bearer
 Scaffold Erection

Erected only nt
t e
under the
supervision of a: pe
om n
C rso
P e
A scaffold at a church being
constructed in Tennessee. Someone
must have been watching over these
folks, because they finished the job
without the scaffold falling down
 Training Requirements
9Electrical presence
9Falling objects
9Fall protection
9Proper use
9Load capacities
9Retrain
 Training Erectors
9Recognize hazards
9Correct procedures
 Avoid the Main Hazards
of Scaffolds
9Falls from elevation
9Scaffold collapse
9Bad Planking
9Getting struck by
falling tools or debris
9Electrocution
 Summary
Remember to:
Use appropriate scaffold construction
methods
9Erect, move, or alter scaffold properly
9Protect from falling objects or tools

Ensure stable access

Use a competent person
9Train on scaffold construction and the hazards involved with scaffolds
9Inspect scaffold before each shift and after alteration
9Determine fall protection requirements
That’s all folks